The Scarlet Speedster’s latest sprint has had to grind to a temporary halt, as The Flash season 7’s been forced to pause production due to a crew member testing positive for COVID-19. The asymptomatic diagnosis was revealed via a notice that Warner Bros. TV sent to all production employees over the weekend. In order to be as cautious as possible, filming has now been suspended with immediate effect and contact tracing’s been initiated.
According to what Deadline has heard, the studio’s currently working out ways to continue with their production schedule in order to resume shooting without the involvement of the unknown affected individual and their potential close contacts, who are self-isolating.
What with filming on season 6 being called off when the pandemic hit earlier this year, season 7 will have the task of wrapping up the lingering plot threads of the last run of the show, like the ultimate defeat of Eva McCulloch’s Mirror Master and freeing Iris from the Mirroverse. There’s also the issue of writing out Ralph Dibny, following Hartley Sawyer’s firing. We likewise know to expect the return of evil speedster Godspeed.
It’s unclear right now if season 7 will be the final year for The Flash, as Grant Gustin has previously revealed that his contract expires following this next run and the pandemic had interrupted negotiations to extend it. The CW has also been clearing its deck of Arrowverse series lately, with both Supergirl and Black Lightning being cancelled. Barry Allen’s vehicle has always been the most popular DC show on the network, though, so there may be no reason to worry.
The Flash season 7 is set to premiere Tuesday, February 23rd on The CW.